Filling-machine.



C. L. BASTIAN.

FILLING MACHINE.

APPLIUATION FILED 11111.11, 1907.

Patented May 3, 1910.

`the bottle.

,UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

'CHARLES I.. BAsrmN, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, .assIGNon lro Bo'r'rnnns m'acirrr'zmltrv MANUFACTURING COMPANY, or* CHICAGO, ILLINoIs, A ConPonA'rIoN or I nnztrmr-s..4

FILLING-MACHINE.

Speuication of Letters Patent'.

To all whom 'it may conc-em:

Be it known that I, CHARLES L. BAs'rmN, a citizen of the United States, residing at lChicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented -new and useful Improvements in Fi1ling-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates more particularly to that class of filling machines which are employed for filling bottles with been or other carbonated liquids and it comprises certain improvements in this art, which, for convenience, I have shown embodied 1n a valve mechanism of the general construction disclosed in my companion application filed of even date herewith, although it will be readily understood by those familiar with the art, that theinvention can be embodied with equally satisfactory results in other filling machines and valve mechanisms.

In bottling beer heretofore, according to the old methods and with the old bottling machines, more or less foam has generally been produced in the bottle and while this is objectionable it nevertheless has prevented the bottle from being entirely lilled with beer so that a space has been left in the -bottle wherein the gas may expand during the pasteurizing process. If the bottle is completely lled with beer there will -be great danger of the bottle bursting or having its stopper blown off during the pasteurizing process. With certain improved methods and machines, foaming asan incident to bottling beer has been greatl reduced and with certain methods and mac ines entirely eliminated in a practical sense. Therefore it becomes necessary to regulate and control the quantity of beer in the bottle 'and thereby provide a suicient space for the expansion of the gas during the pasteurizing process.

The-object of this invention is to provide means'of simple construction and adapted tobe applied easilyl to bottling machines for 4regulatingand 4controlling the quantity of beer or other carbonated liquid which enters In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 shows a filling machine embodying the invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged central sectional view. Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view 'of the sleeve.

Referring to the drawings 1 designates the body of the filling valve which mayy be fastened in 'an opening 2 inthe bottom of the liquid anke in any mutatie manner.

The body has a central bore 5 into which vthe filling tube 6 is screwed or otherwise secured. 'lhe headI 7 is slidably arranged, von the llmg tube and has a seat.8 in its lower face. 'An enlarged bore 9 is provided in this seat and in apart of the head and it communicates by lateral passage 10 with an upright valve is ocate at the juncture of this assage andv it comprises a plug 12 Whic is seated in a bore 13 in the head and is provided with a large ort 14 and a contracted port 15, these ports the passages 10 and 11 at di erentftimes for the purposes fully pointed out in my companion application aforesaid.

The lever` arm 16 is fastened at one end to Patented, May 3 191972 assa e 11 in the head. A checkl ingada ted to connect i' one end of the plug 12 and this arm carries a pin 17 at its upper end which is arranged to travel in a slot 18 at the lower end of a link 19 which is ivotally connected at 'its upper end 20 to t e body. An air tube 21 is screwed into the head 7 and projects upward through a stuffing box 22 and an opening 23 in the body 1 and carries on its upper end a head 24 and a rubber gasket 24". The air tube is provided with one or more. lateral ports 25A which are closed when the machlne is at rest and are opened when the `bottle is in filling position and the air tube is raised as herein described. The upper 'end of the air tube is located within a tube 26 which is arranged within the tank and secured by the body 1 over the head 24 and the upper end of the air tube. A sleeve 27 is arranged to slide freely on the tube 26 and it is provided with a weighted head 28 and one or more lateral ports 29 beneath the head. A rod or stem 30 is fastened to the head 28 and pro'ects downward in the tube 26 to be en a e by the head 24 of the air tube as wil e described hereafter. The sleeve 27 has a lateral projection or foot 31 which is ided on apost 32 xed in the body l anV carries the l1 uid valve 33 to and from its seat 34 in the ody at the up er end of the bore 5. No claim is made in his application for the invention previously described for, as heretofore stated, that forms the subject matter of my companion application and is simply used here to. illustrate one type of lling machine valve mechanism with which my invention can be employed.

A sleeve 35 provided interiorly with grooves 36 is lheld in placewon A' the ,filling tube 6 by a collar 37 at-the lower end of of said sleeve.

said tube. This sleeve carries a removable collar 38 at its upper end which engages the seat 8.' A guide bell 39 is slidably arranged on the vsleeve 35 and is held in place thereon by a peripheral flange 35 at the lower end This guidebell is provided with a rubber seat 40 for the mouth of the bottle and it has a recess 41 in to receive the collar '38.

A spring 42 incloses the filling tube and operates between the body 1 and the head 7 and presses said head away from the body to seat the gasket against the body thereby to close the air tube. This gasket 24 and the' lateral openings 25 in the-air tube constitute with the adjacent portion of the body 1 an air valve whereby communication is established between thel interior of the tank and the bottle.

In ractice the air valve is held normally close by the spring 42, the large port 14 of the check valve is normall open and the liquid valve 33 is also normal y closed, being held in its seat by gravity. A bottle is moved up against the guide-bell and on the filling tube. The mouth of the bottle engages the -seat 40 and pushes the bell upward iirst against the collar 38 and then against the seat 8 in head 7, the `filling tube 6 and the sleeve 35 meanwhile entering the bottle. On the continued upward movement of the bottle the head is carried upward on the filling tube against the pressure of spring 42 and the air tube, moving with the head,` opens the air valve 24.- ,At this time com-v munication between the passages 10 and 11 4d .is through the large port 14 of the check valve so that the pressure in the bottle ma be equalized with the pressure in the ta before the liquid valve is opened. The air or gas connection is established through the ports 25, tube 21, passage 11, port 14, passage 10, bore 9 and grooves 36. On the continued upward movement of the bottle and head 7, the head 24 on the upper end of the air tube engages and ushes upward the rod or stem 30 thereby li ing the sleeve 27 and unseating the liquid valve 33. The position of the check valve and its lever arm does not change relatively to the head 7 while the head is being raised to open the air valve and until the pressure in the bottle has been equalized with the pressure in the tank for during this initial movement of the hea the pin A17 travels in the slot 18 to the upper end of said slot. On the continued upward movement' of the headto open the liquid valve,`as just described, the pin 17 having reached the limit of its movement in the its upper end' :ai y esaevef contracted port '15 into register with said passages, whei'eb the outflow of ainor gas from the bottle, ue to the inilowing'liquid, is retarded by reasonof the contracted port v 15 to prevent. the liquid from foaming in the bottle. Y L

The sleever35'regulates and controls the quantityI of liquid in the bottle because the liquid 'willstop flowing into the bottle when l the level of the liquid in the bottle reaches and submerges vthe lower endfof the sleeve and thereb as from t e pli-events the escape ofair or ottle through the grooves 36.

y changing the length of the sleevel 35 provision can be readily made for filling the bottle to any heightdesired. Thus aspace which constitutes any expansion chamber o' pre-determined areaI can be left uniformly in all bottles iilled on machines similarly bottle and the amount of gas 4in the bottle but it can be easily re latedb ychan n' the (liength of the sleevuas herettrifore'ignldi cate After the bottle is filled it is removed from the filling tube, the guide-bell and sleeve following the bottle to the end 'of the tube by gravity andthe head 7 being returned to itsnormal position by the spring 42 thereby closing t e air valve 24 and bringing vthe large port 14 into register with passages 10 and 11. The liquid valve closes by gravity. v What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a filling machine, the combination -of a Villin' tube',' a sleeve loosely mounted loosely mounted on said tube and movable n thereon with the bottle between the lower end of the tube and the head 4while the bottle is being adjusted in filling position, said' bottle and permit the escape of air` or as therefrom while bei filled, and a gui ebell for the bottle carried by and movable on and with the sleeve.

3. -In a vfilling machine, the combi-nation fille thereon of a filling tube, a sleeve loosely mounted on said tube and movable thereon with 4the bottle while the bottle is being adjusted in filling position, said sleeve being adapted to extend into the bottle and permit the escapelof air or gas therefrom while being a collar on the upper end of the sleeve, a peripheral flange at the lower end of the sleeve, and a ide-bell for the bottle movable on the s eeve between said collar and fiange and movable with the sleeve on the filling tube. 4. In a filling machine, the combination of a filling tube, a head on said tube, a eollar at 'the lower end of the tube, a sleeve loosely mounted on the tube and Imovable between the head and said collar while the bottle is being adjusted' in filling position, said sleeve being adapted to extend into the bottle and permit the escape of air or gas therefrom while being filled, a collar t e upper end of said sleeve, a peripheral flange at the lowerend of said sleeve,l and a guide-bell movable on and with the sleeve and i. relativel)T thereto between said collar and flange. 1 g

5. In a filling machine, the combination of a li uid tank, a filling tube, a liquid valve, a hea on said tube, an air connection between the tank and said head, a' sleeve loosely mounted on the tube and movable thereon while the bottle is being adjusted in filling position and having an air assage therethrough to connect with the air connection in the head said sleeve being ada ted to extend into the bottle and permit t e esca e of air or gas therefrom while being fille and a guide-bell on the sleeve and movable therewith and relatively thereto,

' CHARLES L. BASTIAN. 

